Why UK’s 16 new F-35 fighter jets can’t fly

Stealth aircraft grounded as faulty fuel tube blamed for US military plane crash

F-35, fighter jet, plane
F-35 is the costliest plane in history
(Image credit: Getty Images)

The UK has been forced to ground all 16 of its newly purchased F-35 fighter jets after a malfunctioning fuel tube was identified as the cause of a recent US military jet crash.

A spokesperson for the F-35 programme said that “the US and its international partners including the United Kingdom and Israel have temporarily suspended F-35 flight operations for a fleet-wide inspection of a fuel tube within the engine on all F-35 aircraft”, according to Turkish newspaper Daily Sabah.

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